Literacy in Composition Studies Mar 2022 RSS Open Access

Book Review—The Borders of AIDS: Race, Quarantine & Resistance by Karma R. Chávez

Ruben “Ruby” Mendoza

Abstract

The Borders of AIDS: Race, Quarantine & Resistance is a critical contribution to the field of rhetoric and composition. Chvez's book demonstrates queer coalitional work as it examines heteronormative cistems of oppression that have disempowered and marginalized migrant bodies and folks of color since the early AIDS epidemic. 1 However, before engaging with Chvez's work, it is important to note that Ryan Mitchell, Assistant Professor of English at Lafayette College, has also written a review about this book. In his review, Mitchell provides a strong account about the parallels to current events, as well as articulating Chvez's ability to add to archival histories by "shifting focus from the work accomplished by mostly white, mostly middle class, cosmopolitan AIDS activist groups . . . . [and] draw[ing] from queer of color, migrant, and feminist traditions to recover an alternative history of AIDS, one that is attuned to how the epidemic affected (and continues to affect) those on the borders of civic and national belonging. " As Mitchell illuminates, Chvez's work adds to archival work by amplifying a historical perspective that captures racialized migrant bodies and moves away from centering White bodies, organizations, and perspectives. Building from Mitchell, I also see this book queering heteronormative institutionalized cistems of oppression to signify white supremacy's dominance and its violence against marginalized, disempowered, and ignored bodies. 2 As my review suggests, this text argumentatively informs readers about perspectives, identities, and literacies that are not often discussed in dominant heteronormative educational and archival scholarship.

Journal
Literacy in Composition Studies
Published
2022-03-08
DOI
10.21623/1.9.2.5
CompPile
Open Access
OA PDF Gold
Topics
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation context

Cited by in this index (0)

No articles in this index cite this work.

References (20)

  1. Chávez, Karma R. The Borders of AIDS: Race, Quarantine, and Resistance. U ofWashington P, 2021.
     ↗
  2. Mitchell, Ryan. "Review of The Borders of AIDS: Race, Quarantine, and Resistance." Peitho, vol. 23, no. 3, Sp…
  3. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space." Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–63…
     ↗
  4. Rawson, K. J. "Archive This! Queering the Archive." Practicing Research in Writing Studies: Reflexive and Eth…
  5. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
Show all 20 →
  1. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  2. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  3. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  4. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  5. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  6. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  7. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  8. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  9. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  10. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  11. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  12. Chávez, Karma R.The Borders of AIDS: Race, Quarantine, and Resistance. U ofWashington P, 2021.
     ↗
  13. Mitchell, Ryan. "Review ofThe Borders of AIDS: Race, Quarantine, and Resistance."Peitho,vol. 23, no. 3, Sp…
     ↗
  14. Patel, Nigel. "Violent Cistems: Trans Experiences of Bathroom Space."Agenda, vol. 31, no. 1, 2017, pp. 51–6…
     ↗
  15. Rawson, K. J. "Archive This! Queering the Archive."Practicing Research in Writing Studies: Reflexive and Et…
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 0 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related articles

  1. Pedagogy Oct 2023
    Contributors ↗
    rhetorical criticism first-year composition writing pedagogy writing across the curriculum two-year college teacher development collaborative writing assessment writing centers qualitative research multimodality literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies affect and writing literary studies book reviews editorial matter
  2. Reflections: A Journal of Community-Engaged Writing and Rhetoric Feb 2026
    Voices from Rock Bottom: Queering Addiction Recovery Rhetoric & Community Literacy ↗
    Danielle Bacibianco
    rhetorical criticism archival research multimodality literacy studies gender and writing public rhetoric community literacy
  3. Pedagogy Oct 2025
    Contributors ↗
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism genre theory cultural rhetorics first-year composition writing pedagogy advanced composition creative writing writing across the curriculum graduate education two-year college service learning teacher development technical communication professional writing labor and working conditions archival research multimodality artificial intelligence literacy studies race and writing gender and writing disability studies literary studies editorial matter
  4. Communication Design Quarterly Sep 2025
    Review of "Queer Techné: Bodies, Rhetoric, and Desire in the History of Computing by Patricia Fancher," Fancher P. (2024). Queer techné: Bodies, rhetoric, and desire in the history of computing. National Council of Teachers of English. ↗
    Thomas Gurinskas
    rhetorical criticism technical communication professional writing archival research digital rhetoric gender and writing book reviews
  5. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Mar 2025
    Political Mourning: Identity and Responsibility in the Wake of Tragedy ↗
    Kimberley Hannah-Prater
    rhetorical criticism archival research social media race and writing gender and writing affect and writing editorial matter